Leslie – Liam Fox’s deals cannot replace trade with the EU

Commenting on Liam Fox’s appearance at the International Trade Select Committee today, Chris Leslie MP, leading supporter of Open Britain and member of the House of Commons International Trade Select Committee, said:

“Liam Fox’s appearance at the Trade Select Committee underlined why the Government’s assumption that trade with Europe can be replaced by trade with the rest of the world is so flawed.

“He can’t guarantee that trade deals we enjoy through our EU membership will continue unchanged when we leave. He was disgracefully complacent about the prospect of a deal with the US leading to a flood of chlorinated chicken invading our supermarkets.

“And crucially, the chief trade negotiator admitted the Government has no idea of what the cost of trading with the EU under destructive WTO tariffs would be. This just underlines how reckless it is for ministers to continue to say that “no deal is better than a bad deal”.

“No number of dodgy deals negotiated by Liam Fox can replace the trade that will be lost as a result of the Government’s reckless ideological choice to leave the Single Market and the Customs Union.”